The pranic or etheric body is a kind of double or twin to the physical body, an energy template that closely follows the contours of its grosser counterpart. Its luster is affected by a person’s physical health and fitness. Other factors such as emotional and mental well-being also have an impact on its size and intensity. Even refinement and spirituality affect the vital body’s quality, but they manifest in a different way than robust physical health would.

The vital body closely follows the contours of its grosser counterpart. The nature of the physical body is such that it has no existence or reality separate from the animating principal behind it. Prana holds the cells together, initiates growth in the organism, powers the organs, and instigates movements of the limbs. The grosser form’s inception is on the pranic level, meaning that it is molded from a subtle blueprint that determines the shape, size, and characteristics of a person’s outward appearance.